Today’s college students are juggling multiple demands and are also entering school lacking essential skills, which is significantly impacting their ability to study and focus, according to a survey released by Cengage Learning.

nearly half of today’s college students hold jobs and 30 percent report being distracted by external responsibilities,

more than 25 percent of their students enter the classroom without basic skills in reading, writing, math and other areas.

Tech Effect: Technology Positively Impacts Student Engagement

• A majority (58 percent) of instructors believe that technology in courses positively impacts student engagement.• Seventy-one percent of instructors that rated student engagement levels as “high” report seeing a great benefit to learning outcomes as a result of using technology in courses.• Seventy-one percent of students who are employed full-time and seventy-seven percent of students who are employed part-time prefer more technology-based tools in the classroom.

Survey Says: Increased Need and Support for Educational Technology

According to the survey, students and instructors have seen technology improve engagement in the past 12 months.

• In fact, 79 percent of instructors and 86 percent of students have seen the average level of engagement improve over the last year as they have increased their use of digital educational tools.• Additionally, 67 percent of students reported they preferred courses that use a great deal of technology, a nine percent increase from the previous year.• Similarly, 58 percent of instructors said they prefer teaching courses that use a great deal of technology, a 10 percent increase from 2009.

What type of impact have the following technologies had on your overall learning?

■ 87% of students believe online libraries and databases have had the most significant impact on their overall learning.■ 62% identify blogs, wikis, and other online authoring tools while 59% identify YouTube and recorded lectures.■ E-books and e-textbooks impact overall learning among 50% of students surveyed, while 42% of students identify online portals.Which of the following technologies will have the greatest impact on student engagement?

■ 44% of instructors believe that online libraries and databases will have the greatest impact on student engagement.■ 32% of instructors identify e-textbooks and 30% identify interactive homework solutions as having the potential to improve engagement and learning outcomes. (ereaders was 11%)■ 49% of students believe that online libraries and databases will have the greatest impact on student engagement.■ 31% identify e-textbooks and 27% identify interactive homework solutions as having the potential to improve engagement and learning outcomes. (ereaders was 11%) Students are more optimistic.

A survey jointly conducted by education solutions provider Cengage Learning and higher education research firm Eduventures concluded that students are entering college with too few essential skills and too many external demands on their time to optimize their higher education experience but that the use of digital tools can help take some of the edge off.

A survey report, “Instructors and Students: Technology Use, Engagement and Learning Outcomes,” was recently released by Cengage Learning. The survey was conducted by research and consulting firm Eduventures and was administered to 751 students and 201 instructors across the United States in December 2010. This is the second Cengage Learning/Eduventures survey designed to uncover how educational technology impacts overall student engagement and learning outcomes.

According to survey results, students and instructors do agree that educational technology can enhance engagement, which can lead to improved learning outcomes.